a. Field of the Invention
The instant invention relates to power generation. In particular, the instant invention relates to the generation of electrical power from thermal energy.
b. Background Art
Electricity, and its ready availability, are very important to the modern lifestyle. Power generation systems produce electricity from other energy sources, such as fossil fuels (e.g., coal, petroleum, natural gas) or nuclear materials.
Many power generation systems attempt to harness thermal energy, such as solar energy or geothermal energy, for conversion to electrical energy. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 6,374,607 to Takabu discloses an apparatus that includes facing high- and low-temperature sections with a bimetallic strip interposed therebetween. The bimetallic strip is attached to a rotary member. As the bimetallic strip is heated by the high-temperature section, it flexes towards the low-temperature section, where it cools and flexes back to the high-temperature section, thereby inducing reciprocating motion that causes the rotary member to turn and generate electricity.
Extant power generation systems, however, are subject to numerous disadvantages. For example, to generate appreciable electricity, a solar farm must occupy a very large surface area (that is, it has a very large physical footprint). Other power generation systems have undesirable carbon footprints. Still other power generation systems exhibit low output and/or low efficiency.